I got all 3 of my predictions correct. Maybe I should have given more credit to the rumblings of AEW.

The Wrestle Kingdom show on Friday was superb. There was fantastic wrestling throughout and it did so much. However, the event was 5 hours long, and even then some matches went only for 6 minutes and felt a little rushed. While it ran for a long time the show never felt like a drag, however as a wrestling show, it was great for a veteran observer, but did little to reward new fans or people just tuning in.

I will disagree that Tanahashi vs Omega was the best match and was fitting. There was great story telling in the match, but I never felt like Tanahashi put on much offence, and was lagging behind, never seemed ahead, and all around didn’t give as much as he could. I enjoyed that they continued to protect the one winged angel, and that the variety of the moves used highlighted that finishers should be just that. Through imitating Tanahashi, Omega used his finisher, but having received the move, Tanahashi kicked out immediately, it was a great touch and detail in a well thought out enjoyable match. The match was great, don’t get me wrong, it deserves to be remembered, but to me it doesn’t stand up to some of the other matches on the card.

The Ospreay vs Ibushi match was my favourite match on the show, and it opened the show proper, and provided a great back and forth match, where it eventually became clear that Ospreay had answers for everything Ibushi had, and a few surprises. There were quite a few stiff sections of the match, and the story line heading out of the match was an interesting choice. I think if I were to recommend a match to watch it would be this one. I believe it does a better job portraying two people as equals with one winning out due to more heart and resolve than any other match on the card, and they are two of the best wrestlers around.

AEW was announced over the last week and it’s been an interesting time, but it’s still ongoing and it’s all very exciting. There’s still so much more to be announced, and I hope that something incredible comes out of it, something that can compete with WWE, and in my mind, NXT specifically. I know that there are differences in the main WWE and NXT, and I think that creating a promotion that can be as big as WWE but have NXT style engagement and storylines, but with top tier talent (not that NXT isn’t full of incredible talent) could push the wrestling industry forward, and become truly one of the greatest spectacles. The industry only seems to be growing at the moment, and there’s certainly a space in the market for a big promotion that appeals to the older fans.